What Makes a Successful ICT Project: Part 1

As I watched the video for this week and read through the case studies and articles, the overall message I received is that, in order to successfully enact innovative change, the key components one must have include clear vision, extensive research and planning, proper timing, feeling of ownership by stakeholders, and a desire to constantly evaluate feedback in order to improve performance.

In the article “L.A. cancels iPads-in-the schools program: a failure of vision, not technology”, Bradley Chambers states that “the first step to a successful project is proper vision.” Having proper, clear vision is an imperative first step in innovative change because it allows one to have a focused goal. It is only when innovators establish a focused goal, that they can begin the next key to success in innovative change: conducting appropriate, extensive research in order to effectively plan how to achieve this vision.

Conducting extensive research is important to innovative change because it allows innovators to see “what works” and “what doesn’t work” when it comes to implementing change. By thoroughly examining various case-studies, opinions, successes, and failures of innovative change initiatives, innovators can make well-informed decisions about which practices they should or should not implement in their own projects. It also allows innovators to plan for potential obstacles that may occur during the implementation process. A great example of the benefits of conducting extensive research in order to drive the planning process was seen in the eSkwela case study. “During the project inception stage...a SWOT analysis vis-à-vis an identification of risks was done” (Commission on Information and Communications Technology). As a result, when they later “encountered many of the delays that were anticipated” (CICT), they were prepared to handle them. They were able to handle these obstacles because they had done their research and planned accordingly for these situations. Effective research and planning also aids in properly acknowledging another key component of successfully implementing innovative change: timing.

Timing is important to innovative change because the readiness and ability of potential stakeholders to accept and implement a new innovation program can significantly affect whether or not an initiative is successful. Two excellent examples of the importance of timing (one with a positive result and one with a not-so-positive result) was displayed in the eSkwela article. When initially beginning their innovative project, the eSkwela Project Team “was fortunate that DepEd was also rethinking its ICT4E Master Plan.” (CICT) As a result of this amazing timing, “DepEd-BALS management was highly enthusiastic about the project since it was aligned to its own ICT4E vision” and “the partnership was eventually sealed through a Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 2006.” (CICT). However, the eSkwela team also experienced the negative effects of bad timing. During their first year, they witnessed “a number of enrollees dropped out of the program midway due to work schedule conflicts, movement of residence, lack of money for personal allowances, lack of personal motivation to continue studying, and so on.” (CICT) In each of these instances, the student was either not fully ready to accept the innovation program or simply not able.

Another key component of successful innovative change that I gathered from the readings is that stakeholders must feel a sense of ownership in the project. If stakeholders feel ownership, they feel motivated to be more vested in the success of the project. The eSkewla Project Teams showed this masterfully by creating a sense of expectancy for stakeholders “to take the lead in the infrastructure and support components of the project” as a way “to heighten community ownership for the project.” (CICT). This sense of ownership can also be created through another key to innovative change: feedback

The need for consistent feedback from a variety of sources is a key in innovative change not only because it allows stakeholders to feel a sense of ownership. Feedback also helps innovators immediately see what works and what doesn’t work so that they can be proactive in either perfecting the successful area or improving the areas that showed difficulties.

As I move throughout this course, I look forward to utilizing each of these components as I develop my own innovation project. I know it will be challenging but with the help of the course’s Plus Delta Tool via our case-study critiques and discussion boards, I feel that I will learn a great deal from my fellow classmates’ feedback, experiences, and opinions. I believe that this, along with the course content, will help to make the process of creating and implementing a successful innovative plan very productive.